Chicago aldermen raise prospect of tobacco tax hike

Two aldermen looking for last-minute ways to head off painful budget cuts proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel floated the idea Wednesday of extending the city’s cigarette tax to other tobacco products.

Ald. Matthew O’Shea, 19th, and Leslie Hairston, 5th, brought up that option at a City Council meeting in an effort to soften spending cuts at city libraries, mental health clinics and the 911 center.

Other aldermen worked behind the scenes to limit planned reductions in tax rebates to condo owners, scale back plans for a $2-a-day hike in weekday parking taxes and find an alternative use for at least one of the three police stations Emanuel plans to close.

All were signs that aldermen continued to tinker at the margins of Emanuel’s proposed $6.3 billion budget.

“We have a few days left around the clock to make sure we’re tweaking and adjusting this budget in a responsible fashion,” said Brendan Reilly, 42nd, vice chairman of the Budget Committee, which meets Monday to consider final changes before next Wednesday’s vote.

Aldermen and administration officials weren’t sure how much new money could be raised by broadening the tobacco tax — as Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle plans to do so she can raise $12 million for the county next year. And Finance Committee Chairman Edward Burke, 14th, said he thought it would be of little immediate help.

“I think it’ll probably take a while to be heard in committee and adopted, so I would say it has no effect on” the budget proposal, Burke said. Changing the city tobacco tax also would require changes to state law, Emanuel administration officials added.

Preckwinkle on Wednesday also defended her proposal to raise alcohol taxes as part of her proposed $2.94 billion budget set for a Nov. 18 vote.

Preckwinkle stood with health care leaders at Stroger Hospital to say higher taxes could curb consumption and lessen alcohol-related health problems. She wants to raise $10.9 million next year by increasing the tax on wholesale alcohol prices.

The tax on a 24-pack of beer would increase 6 cents, and on a 750 ml bottle of vodka by no more than 50 cents, her office said. Preckwinkle said alcohol would cost less by 2013, when she plans to eliminate the final quarter of the 1-percentage-point sales tax hike pushed through by her predecessor, Todd Stroger.

“Quite simply, everybody will get a tax break. But we decided that it was appropriate that there should be a bigger tax break on toothpaste and baby formula than booze,” Preckwinkle said.